Method and apparatus for wireless parking meter payment

Abstract

A system includes a processor configured to add time to a parking meter in response to wireles sly receiving a request to add additional time from a vehicle computer, including charging a payment method, included with the request, for the added time, the request being received in response to a notification sent by the processor to the vehicle computer a predetermined amount of time before time on the parking meter expires.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system comprising:
 a processor configured to:   add time to a parking meter in response to wireles sly receiving a request to add additional time from a vehicle computer, including charging a payment method, included with the request, for the added time, the request being received in response to a notification sent by the processor to the vehicle computer a predetermined amount of time before time on the parking meter expires.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the request is received over a dedicated short-range channel (DSRC). 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the predetermined amount of time is preconfigured and stored in a parking meter memory. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the predetermined amount of time is user-defined, stored in a vehicle memory, and received by the processor when an initial amount of time is added to the parking meter. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to send a confirmation message to the vehicle computer once the time has been added. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to send an error message to the vehicle computer, if time cannot be added, the error message including a reason why time cannot be added. 
     
     
         7 . A system comprising:
 a vehicle-based processor configured to:   wireles sly request addition of a specified time amount to a parking meter, in response to a wireless instruction having been received from a mobile device, the instruction including the specified time amount.   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the wireless instruction further includes a payment method and the processor is configured to include the payment method in the request. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the processor is configured to notify the mobile device that time is about to expire on the parking meter and request the instruction from the mobile device. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the processor is configured to notify the mobile device that time is about to expire in response to a message received wirelessly from the parking meter. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the processor is configured to notify the mobile device that time is about to expire in response to a determination that only a predetermined amount of time exists before the parking meter expires. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the processor is configured to wirelessly request addition of the specified time amount using a dedicated short-range channel (DSRC). 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the processor is configured to wirelessly request addition of the specified time amount based on a determination that a vehicle memory contains an instruction to add a predetermined amount of time, to be used as the specified time amount, if the parking meter is about to expire, instead of requesting addition of the specified time in response to the wireless instruction having been received. 
     
     
         14 . A computer-implemented method comprising:
 receiving a wireless notification at a vehicle computer from a parking meter that time is about to expire;   sending a first request to a mobile device requesting an amount of time to add to the parking meter; and   sending a second request to the parking meter to add a specified amount of time, included in an instruction received responsive to the first request.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein at least the second request is sent using a dedicated short-range channel (DSRC). 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the second request includes a payment method. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the payment method is included in the received instruction. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the payment method is retrieved from a vehicle memory. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising storing a confirmation that the specified amount of time was added to the parking meter, in a vehicle memory. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising sending an error message to the mobile device, the error message including a reason why the specified amount of time was not added to the parking meter.